Can this year’s crop of Magic Millions two-year-olds, which are lacking the substance of recent seasons, produce spark today, and can Chris Waller end a rare Saturday drought on the local and Queensland fronts with the help of Nash Rawiller at Rosehill Gardens?
Chasing greats such as Malcolm Johnston and Mick Dittman for suspensions, Rawiller is scheduled to be astride seven strong fancies: Wineglass Bay (Chandon), Narito (Kia Ora), Frumos (TAB), Bonny Ezra (January Cup), Estadio Mestalla (Rosehill Bowling Club), First Light (Cleanaway) and Kalino (Fujitsu) for the Hall Of Fame trainer, who needs a lift.
Chris Waller is hoping Nash Rawiller can get the best out of a few of his charges at Rosehill today.Credit:Getty
Only last Saturday the heavyweight jockey was again outed, taking his tally to 18 – 14 for careless riding and four for whip offences – since January 2021. He commences his latest sentence on January 8.
Rawiller rides the fine line that is necessary to get top results. Andy Tindall, a former jockey who became a Queensland chief stipe, once rebuked Dittman by noting that he himself had never been suspended throughout a long saddle career. Dittman replied: “But you weren’t much of a jockey.”
Back on his home Rosehill circuit Waller, who in recent weeks has fallen short of his usual impact, will need all the assistance Rawiller can supply. The trainer notched only two minor placings from Royal Randwick and Doomben last Saturday.
Alas, Waller’s Chrysaor has been scratched from the Aquis Gold Nugget for two-year-old colts and geldings at the Gold Coast.
In the fillies division, the Gold Pearl, the Tony Gollan-trained early favourite Shirk The Law has been scratched due to a wide barrier.
Five out of the last eight winners of the Magic Millions Classic, which is run next Saturday, raced at today’s meeting, but, since being split in 2020 from one two-year-old event to two, they haven’t had the same influence.
So far the youngers in the current lead-ups have not had the depth of recent Magic Millions Classic winners Away Game and Coolangatta. Sovereign Fund scored as expected at Doomben last Saturday but against only three rivals. Being so young, their ability can explode, but recently it’s been more fizzle than boom.
Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott’s early favourite for the Gold Nugget, Royal Entrance, won at Warwick Farm on December 21 and has the rails gate and James McDonald.
The $425,000 yearling purchase, which carries the colours of racing big spenders, could find Quasimodo, a $46,000 yearling, hard to beat. Quasimodo is owned by a group of Coonamble enthusiasts and trained by Clint Lundholm at Dubbo.
Nash Rawiller takes over from James McDonald on Estadio Mestalla at Rosehill.Credit:Getty
Will the rail be a drawback for Royal Entrance? Navigators at recent Gold Coast meetings have scouted wide due to suspect ground inside.
Gold Coast racecourse manager Nevesh Ramdhani, who did so well with Sydney tracks, reckons the surface will equalise if there is no more rain and is officially classified as good, which is unlikely at Rosehill because of recent weather.
Slow to heavy will suit the US-bred Frumos, which has been beaten four times when favourite since winning on the Rosehill heavy.
“A horse runs on his lungs, perseveres with his heart and wins on his character,” the renowned breeding authority Federico Tessio decreed. Rawiller will discover if there is a missing link with Frumos today.
Estadio Mestalla, from Ireland, races in the same interests – Orbis Bloodstock – as Frumos but is untested in the wet. Estadio Mestalla has notched two out of three since arriving here and was only beaten due to bad riding tactics from an outside gate – the situation Rawiller will have to overcome on him today.
However, Estadio Mestalla is an example of how Waller can now get imports ready for a first-up killing, which is the case with Wineglass Bay, which showed more than the stable usually allows in a recent barrier trial.
Waller, though, is being tested at Rosehill by Shaquero (Furphy), which was second in the 2020 Nugget before winning the Magic Millions Classic.
Since his two-year-old season, Shaquero, which also won the Randwick Breeders Plate, has had 12 unplaced starts.
Needs Rawiller? Waller figures the Irish touch of Ben Coen could be more beneficial.
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